Tips & Tricks

  1. To peel almonds and pistachios easily soak them in hot water for 15-20 minutes.
  2. Egg slicer can also be used in slicing olives, mushrooms, strawberries, paneer and grapes too.
  3. To remove the pungent smell and sharp raw taste from onions in salads, cut and soak the onion in water for 10-15 minutes. Rinse and use.
  4. To get rid of cockroaches, mix ¼ cup of boric powder in ¼ cup of flour and knead it into a dough. Make small balls and stick it on the edges and corners of the cabinets or places infested by cockroaches.
  5. To preserve green peas, keep it in an air tight plastic container in the freezer.
  6. Almonds and pistachios if soaked for 6-8 hours or overnight in plain water will peel off easily and even taste better than soaked in hot water.
  7. To ripen fruits, wrap them in newspaper and put in a warm place for 2-3 days.
  8. If the lemon or lime is hard, put it in warm water for 5-10 minutes to make it easier for squeeze.
  9. To sharpen the blades of your mixer grinder grind some common salt in it for a minute or 2.
  10. Instead of frying  paneer, immerse it in boiling water to make it soft and spongy. A healthy way out.
  11. Before storing pickles in jars, burn a small grain of asafoetida over a lit coal and invert the empty pickle jar for over it for some time. This will prevent the growth of fungus in it.
  12. Putting few dried mint leaves in the rice container will keep insects at bay.
  13. Put few cloves in the sugar to keep ants at bay.
  14. While setting yogurt in winter, place the container in a warm place like oven or over the voltage stabilizer.
  15. To unclog a drain, mix a cup of salt with a cup of baking soda. Pour these into the drain, and then add a pot of boiling water.
  16. To peel garlic easily, warm garlic flakes slightly either in a microwave oven or on a griddle before peeling.
  17. When adding flour to any gravy to thicken it, first mix the flour in a little liquid to make a smooth paste and then add it to the gravy and stir well. This will prevent lumps from forming.
  18. Don’t throw away cardamom peels. Put it in the tea canister. It will lend a very subtle flavour of cardamom to every cup of tea you brew!
  19. Don’t throw away the leftover edges/sides of bread. Dry it in the sun or in mircowave and powder it in a mixer to form fine breadcrumbs. Refrigerate and use as required.
  20. Dry roast spices like cumin seeds, coriander seeds cardamom, cloves, etc. on a griddle before powdering. They will grind faster and finer.
  21. To brighten up the vegetables and to bring out the crunchiness in it while making salad, dip them in cold water for about 10-15 minutes. Veggies will turn out fresh and crunchy.
  22. For tastier salads, before u serve it, put the cut veggies in the freezer for around 10 minutes, remove it after 10-15 minutes, toss in the dressing and serve immediately. Voila..Crunchy and tasty salad.
  23. Rubbing little oil to the grater before grating cheese will make the process easier.
  24. When cooking vegetables add salt in the end. Adding salt early can dehydrate vegetables and reduce their nutritional value.
  25. For making soft puris knead the dough using milk instead of water.
  26. While browning the onions adding a little salt to it will help in speeding up the process.
  27. While cooking chicken or meat, always cook it first over high flame to seal the juices and then low down the flame and cook till it is cooked through.
  28. To separate each grain of rice, add a little lemon juice and oil to rice while boiling it.
  29. Microwave lemons for around 30 seconds to get more juice out of it.
  30. For fluffier and soft omelettes , add 2-3 spoons of milk to the egg while whisking it.
  31. Place rolled puris in the fridge for ten minutes before frying them, they will consume less oil and will be crisper.
  32. Left over rice can be used to make tasty fried rice.
    Vegetables should be washed before peeling or cutting to preserve the water soluble vitamins.
  33. Peel vegetables as thinly as possible to preserve the minerals and vitamins.
  34. To avoid discolouration of potatoes and eggplant after cutting soak it in water.
  35. Store nuts in the refrigerator to increase their shelf life.
  36. To separate each string of noodles or pasta, run it under cold water immediately after boiling and draining the water.
  37. To avoid burning eyes and tears while cutting onions, chill the onions in the fridge for 10-15 minutes before cutting.
  38. Forgot to soak chanas (chickpeas) or rajmas (kidney beans) overnight? Place the chanas or rajmas with water in microwave for 10 minutes on high power. Then let it soak in the water for 1 hour. They will be as good as soaking overnight.
  39. To check your besan (gram flour) batter has aerated well, drop ½ tsp of it in glass of water, if it floats it’s done, otherwise beat a little more.
  40. To make crisp puris make stiff dough with cold water.
  41. To boil pasta quickly cook it in pressure cooker for 1 whistle and release pressure after 2 minutes.
  42. To set thick yoghurt add 1 tbsp of corn flour to 1 litre of milk.
  43. Knead dough with your leftover chutney and achar masala to make tasty puris.
  44. After finishing your kitchen chores take ½ tsp of sugar on your wet palm and rub well to get rid of smelly hands.

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